Mail-bag catcher and deliverer.



G. HALL & J. BRAND.

MAIL BAG GATOHER AND DELIVERER. APPLICATION FILED DEC. 23, 1910.

1,029,440. Patented June 11, 1912.

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COLUMBIA FLANOCIRAPH c0..WAsHlNuroN. D. c

Ema/whom G. HALL & J. BRAND.

MAIL BAG GATGHER AND DELIVERER.

APPLICATION FILED DEG. 23, 191 0.

Patented June 11, 1912.

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G. HALL z J. BRAND.

' MAIL BAG GATGHER AND DELIVERER.

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MAIL-BAG CATGHER AND DELIVERER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J Line 11, 1912.

Application filed December 23, 1910. Serial No. 598,891.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GUST HALL and JOHNNY BRAND, citizens of the United States, residing at Princeton, in the county of Millelacs and State of Minnesota, have provision of means for catching a bag and for holding the bag in caught position until manually released therefrom, and a still further object of the invention is the provision of a delivery device having a catcher carried thereby and reversibly mounted thereon so that the simultaneous catching and delivering of the mail bag may be accomplished when the train is going in either direction.

Further objects of the invention will appear as the following specific description is read in connection with the accompanying drawing which forms a part of this application, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing a fragment of a car and the station apparatus. Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof showing the station and car receiving apparatus in position to receive mail bags. .Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the receiving apparatus upon the car and at the station in re versed position, and showing mail bags caught therein. Fig. 4 is a vertical section through the car showing the apparatus thereon in end elevation and the station apparatus also in end elevation.

In the specific embodiment of the invention illustrated herein, the station apparatus comprises separated posts 1 and 2 which are arranged practically adjacent the track 3 and have mounted thereon the spaced guiding rails 4 and 5 which are provided with lateral mounting extensions 6 so as to offset the rails 1 and 5 from the posts. The delivery frame is shown as comprising a substan tially U-shaped member 7 with its parallel legs 8 provided with springretracted pins 9 over which the rings 10 upon the mail bag 11 are adapted to be engaged. The U- shaped delivery frame is provided with a plurality of pulleys 12 which travel upon the tracks 1 and hold the frame in such position that the arms 8 extend laterally from the tracks 1 and 5 and hold the mail bag 11 in position to be engaged by the catcher upon the train to be hereinafter described. The lateral extensions 6 form limiting stops and the frame 7 is held against said limiting stops by means of a cable 13 which is removably connected to a hook 14 on the frame 7 and has its opposite end connected to a lever arm 15 which extends laterally from a rod 16 journaledin bearings upon the side post. A suitable spiral spring 17 normally turns the rod in its bearings and thereby retracts the arm 15, and through the cable 13, the frame 7. In this manner, when the catcher strikes the bag, the frame 7 is carried along until the tension of the spring 17 is suchas to cause the release of the spring retracted pins 9 when the bag will be released to the catcher and the frame will then be returned to normal by the spring 17 Projecting from the bottom leg 8 of the frame 7 bolt 18 upon which is reversibly mounted the catcher frame 19. This catcher frame is substantially U-shaped in cross section and has its legs 20 flared outwardly and braced by the struts 21 which extend between the portions of each leg. Mounted upon the bolt 18 is a pair of springs 22 having connected to their ends the cables or cords 23 which pass up alongside of the legs 20 and struts 21 and pass over pulleys 2-1 upon the latter and have their opposite ends connected to locking levers 25 which are pivoted upon the struts. The free end of these levers have connected thereto the flexible pouch receiving saddle 26 which is adapted to fit around the center of the bag and clamp the same so that the bag is held in position until manually released. In order to hold the levers 25 in locked position, spring catches 27 are pivoted to the diverging legs 20 so that the levers will snap over the same when the bag forces the saddle to the position shownin Fig. 3, against the tension of the springs 22. Suitable springs 28 are connected to the opposite sides of the frame at diametrically oppointermediate its length is a pivotal site points from the pivotal bolt 18 so that the frame will be flexibly held in position in case the bag should strike one leg of the catcher'more forcibly than the other one.

The car is shown at 29 and is provided with the usual doorway 30 in the frame of which is vertically mounted a supporting rod 31 which is adapted for rotary movement and which carries the laterally extending delivery arms 32 and 33 both of which are provided with the customary spring fingers 34; to prevent accidental disengagement of the bag. The lower arm 33 carries a catcher 35 similar to the catcher shown at the station which is also reversibly mounted upon the arm 33. It will be noticed by this construction the car may deliver and catch a bag at the same time that the station apparatus is delivering and catching a bag from the car.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is- 1. A device of the class described compris ing a pair of parallel delivery arms adapted to hold a mail bag, a catcher reversibly mounted upon one of said arms, means for locking the bag within the catcher, and flexible means removably connected to the catcher for holding it in catching position.

2. A device of the class described comprising a pair of delivery arms adapted to hold a mail bag, a substantially U-shaped catching frame reversibly pivoted upon one of said arms, a pair of locking levers pivoted upon said frame, a bag receiving saddle, a flexible connection between said levers and saddle, means for holding said levers and saddle in bag receiving position, said means comprising a pair of springs secured to said connection, and means actuated upon the operation of the levers and saddle by the bag to lock the levers around the bag.

3. The combination with a pair of supporting posts, of horizontal, superimposed tracks thereon and offset therefrom, a delivery frame adapted to hold the mail bag and mounted to travel upon said tracks, a

catching device mounted for reversal upon said frame, removable, flexible means for holding said devlce in catching position, re-

silient means carried by one of said posts and removably connected to said delivery frame, to resist movement of the same, and resilient means carried by the second post and adapted to be removably connected to said frame for resisting reverse movement thereof.

4:. The combination with a pair of supporting posts, of horizontal, relatively spaced tracks supported thereon and offset therefrom, a delivery frame adapted to hold the mail bag and mounted to travel upon said tracks, reversible catching means carried by the frame, a vertical shaft mounted for rotation on one of the posts and provided with a laterally extending arm, flexible means carried by said arm and removably connected to said frame, resilient means carried by said shaft to hold the same in retracted position and resist movement of said frame, a similar vertical shaft rotatably mounted upon the second post andprovided with a lateral arm, resilient means carried by said shaft for retracting the same, and flexible means carried by said lateral arm and adapted to be removably secured to said frame to resist reverse motion of the same.

5.- The combination with a pair of supporting posts, of tracks supported thereon and offset therefrom, a delivery frame adapted to hold the mail bag mounted to travel upon said tracks, and means to flexibly hold said frame against travel over the track at either end thereof, together with means carried by the frame for catching the ba Tn testimony whereof we aiiix our signatures in presence of tWo witnesses.

GUST HALL. JOHNNY BRAND. Witnesses:

O. W. BLoM UIsT, MINNIE BLOMQUIST.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

